As Instagram rolled out several new features in 2018, the landscape of Instagram is settling in to its new normal. Of course, nothing stays the same for too long when it comes to social media marketing, so here\u2019s how these new features might trend this year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
IGTV, launched in June 2018, is a \u201cnew app for watching\nlong-form, vertical video from your favorite Instagram creators,\u201d according to\nthe platform. IGTV videos are featured in a separate app, and can also be\nwatched in the Instagram app. With Instagram at over one billion users, this is\na way to allow existing users to jump right into this new media form. The\nvideos can be up to one hour long. While this won\u2019t be replacing YouTube\nanytime soon, it will start to build up content libraries for personalities who\nare already heavily invested on Instagram. Also, unlike YouTube, it\u2019s optimized\nfor vertical viewing right off the bat, which will appeal to the younger crowd\nwho consume this media mainly on their phones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Cinemagraphs are gaining popularity on Instagram and are\nlikely to become posted by more users as the technology to create them\nimproves. They are mainly still photos with a moving element that proceeds in a\nloop. These images appear still at first glance, and then enchant the viewer\nwith a subtle surprise. Remember how the images on the wall in Harry Potter\u2019s\nHogwarts could magically move in their frame and even interact with the\nviewers? Those are cinemagraphs. Recent research has shown that engagement with\ncinemagraphs is 5000% higher that with still images, so expect to see many\nbrands and influencers turning to this unique art form. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
As brands continue to ride the highly popular shoppable\nposts bandwagon, look for more and more shoppable content. These posts make\ncustomer conversion a few steps simpler, which makes Instagram an even more\nvaluable platform for marketing and sales. You might even expect to see a\nseparate app for Instagram shopping roll out soon. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
As Instagram Stories become the main way brands interact\nwith their fans on Instagram, look for them to start engaging with customers on\ntheir story and posting those interactions to Story Highlights as FAQs. With an\nInstagram page as the alternative home page for many businesses in an Instagram\nfriendly space such as tech, fashion, and beauty, expect to see even more\ncontent on these landing pages. Some companies have even hired professional\nwriting services to curate these interactions for the purpose of archiving them\nin Story Highlights. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
As brands constantly seek fresh ways to engage with their\ncustomers, you\u2019ll see Instagram Story polls become more and more commonplace.\nUsers love the emoji slider and the ease of responding to these polls to choose\ntheir own adventure with regard to the content they consume. Story polls and\nother stickers offer customers a new way to interact with the brands they love,\nall within the platform they\u2019re already on. These interactions are fun and,\nwhen done right, don\u2019t feel like ads at all. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s hard to believe Instagram has already existed for eight\nyears. With its founders leaving in late 2018, the simplicity of Instagram\nmight fade away and users could see a more Facebook-like experience where many\ndifferent ways of connecting with the platform are ongoing at once. As the\nintroduction of IGTV heralded, we might see many more Instagram spinoff apps\nsuch as direct messaging and shopping. The platform will keep its focus on the\nvisual side of communication, but what that means for its future is yet to be\nseen. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Resources<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n https:\/\/instagram-press.com\/blog\/2018\/06\/20\/welcome-to-igtv\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n